Travel Has Given Me An Incurable Condition

Currently, I’m planning four major trips in head. In fact, I’m almost always planning no less than 2 or 3 major trips at a time. If I have my way, we’ll be going to St. Martin in June, South Florida in July, Iceland next January, and Australia next summer. I’m sure I’ll try to throw in a few weekend trips, and I’ll definitely insist on going to New York for my birthday.

Y’all, after much thought and consideration, I’ve realized that over the years I’ve developed an incurable condition. The condition, you ask? Delusions of grandeur. I plan trips like my husband and I are Beyoncé and Jay Z, when in reality we are NO WHERE near millionaires. I mean, I’m a teacher, so you know I’m only a thousandaire on a good week!

While my wanderlust is definitely the chief cause, I partly put the blame on Bravo. You know, the channel that features casts of predominantly wealthy men and women. I watch Below Deck, and think to myself that maybe I, too, can charter a yacht in the Caribbean. Spoiler alert: I checked. I can’t. Not even if I brought along all my friends and split the cost. Andy Cohen, look at what you’re doing to me!

The only “private plane” we’ll ever ride in

The problem is, somehow my crazy plans usually work out in some way… albeit a lot smaller and down to Earth. I’m a ceaseless planner and researcher. My husband has hobbies like running and fishing; whereas, my favorite hobby is spending hours on the internet searching for flight and hotel deals.

Through Priceline, we’ve been able to snag some really great hotel rooms that we wouldn’t ordinarily be able to afford. I personally love Priceline when booking hotels. If you’re okay with not knowing exactly what hotel you’re getting before booking, this can save you some money. Travelzoo is also another place I like to look. Every Wednesday they come out with their “Top 20”, which is the top 20 best deals they found searching across the internet. They do a lot of the legwork for you, and find deals that you wouldn’t find otherwise. Wednesday is always my favorite day of the week for this exact reason, and when the wheels in my brain usually start spinning.

Perfect view of the Eiffel Tower from our hotel balcony in ParisLower Manhattan from our room at the W Downtown

Taking advantage of Restaurant Week, we’ve been able to not only dine at some of the nicest local restaurants, but visit some in New York, as well. A few years ago, we joined a group of friends and went to a real fancy steakhouse *in my best southern voice* in the City during restaurant week and (shockingly) somehow ended up sitting at the chef’s table! The best part was that even though we were ordering off the restaurant week menu, and they knew our bill wouldn’t be as expensive as what they were used to, they treated us like we were Warren Buffet. If your trip doesn’t line up with restaurant week, check out sites like Groupon or Restaurant.com. Regardless of how you do it, it’s the experience that counts!

Sometimes, though, the best experiences are the ones you stumble upon. One summer in the Amalfi Coast of Italy, we took a ferry over to the island of Capri. Along the docks were advertisements, so we took chance and set off. It was the tiniest little center console that barely had enough power to get on plane. We passed some truly impressive yachts in that little boat. That didn’t matter, we were on a boat in the Mediterranean!

Our “yacht” for the day

So, that’s my prognosis, my friends. I have come to accept my fate as living with delusions of grandeur. And while my friends laugh as I tell them my latest plans for a safari in South Africa or a treehouse in Bali, I will continue to scour the internet for a way to actually make it happen. Fake it ’til ya make it.